Whitechapel, London - 1888
A four year old boy wandered through the seedy alleyways of east London calling for his mother. His clothes were ragged and his feet bare and muddy. A young woman working the street corner heard his whimpering and ran towards him. "Hello, little one. Lost you mummy, have you?" She smiled as the little boy shook his head yes. She took out a handkerchief to wipe his tear stained face. "Ah, there's he is. What a handsome little boy you are." She looked around the corner to make sure no one was around. "What's your name, sweetie?"
"Michael." The boy replied
The woman heard footsteps coming. "Hide" She whispered to the boy. He hid behind a trash bin and peaked out to see the woman chatting up a well dressed man. She was flirtatious and managed to slip a delicate hand into his coat pocket before the man declined her offer. She looked back to see the boy peering up at her. "Were you looking?"
"Sorry." Michael replied. "Mummy says to hide when men are home. But I look sometimes."
"Looks like your mummy and I had similar occupations." She knelt down beside Michael and took out a gold pocket watch. "I snatched this from that silly man. Have you ever taken something that doesn't belong to you?"
"Yes." The child looked down at the ground as if he'd been caught.
She hands the child the gold pocket watch. "I think you and I can work out a little arrangement together, what say you to that?"
Michael agreed to work with the woman. She cleaned him up to look presentable and set him loose on the streets to collect what he could. He'd pout and flash his big baby blue eyes as a distraction before snatching purses right under people's noses. But just like his mother; the woman disappeared after a few months under mysterious circumstances. But Michael learned lessons on survival enough to sustain him for some time.
Michael was five when he stole from a man with a bit more in his pockets than the little boy expected. Michael got to the abandoned apartment he called home and opened the small purse to find what looked like a watch. He pressed a button on the side of the watch and symbols that he couldn't quite recognize appeared to hover over the watch face in dim blue light.
A loud knock on his door suddenly startled Michael. He put the watch under some ragged old blankets and reached for his knife. He hid it behind his back as the man he'd stolen from walked in. "Give it back, kid." The man demanded.
"Please, sir.." The boy looked up with big dewy eyes. "Please, I'm so hungry... I..."
"Cut the act and give me my things." The man advanced towards Michael and grabbed him by the collar. Michael took out his knife and cut the man's hand.
"You little..." The man pushed the boy to the ground and into his pile of blankets. The blue display of the watch glowed and the man took it back. The man looked around at the squalor the boy was living in. "Where's your mom and dad, kid?"
"Nowhere." The boy replied.
"You've got some fight in you." The man chuckled as he held his bleeding hand.
"What is that thing?" Michael asked. "Is it like a map."
"Actually, yes. You're pretty smart." The man took out another device from his pocket and held it up to the Michael's face. "Hold still."
The device buzzed and scared the boy. "Leave me alone!" Michael kicked the man and ran for the door. But he was stopped by another man standing outside. They held him in place as he squirmed trying to get free. A red light scanned his face and the device began to beep and whir. The man nodded. "He's good, take him."
"Let go!" Michael bit the man's hand and tried to make another run for it before he was caught. The man took out a syringe and pierced Michael's neck. Everything went fuzzy and dark. Michael woke up strapped to a metal table. He wriggled and found himself completely unable to move. He began to cry for help and a woman appeared. She shushed him and placed her hand on his forehead.
"We've rescued you." She said in a calm soothing voice.
Michael looked around at all the strange gadgets around him and tears began to fall. "I'm scared." He whispered.
"You're safe now. You're going to a refuge." The woman replied. "Now, I'm going to take off your restraints and you're going to be a good boy for me. Isn't that right?"
"Yes." Michael whispered. The restraints disappeared and Michael slowly sat up. It was then that he noticed the IV injected into his arm. He frantically began to pull at it. It stung.
"No, you're going to hurt yourself." The woman stopped him. "You were malnourished. This is helping you."
"You're a doctor?" Michael asked.
The woman shook her head yes. The room shook a bit. "I think we've landed." She smiled.
Michael was lead down the halls of the ship by three men. He looked around at the unfamiliar sights around him in a mixture of fear and wonder. He wasn't expecting a quiet garden to be waiting outside the door. It looked like a sweet village in the English countryside next to a beautiful cottage. They walked in to find a cozy living quarters with a warm fire and a table filled with pastries. It looked like something out of a dream. Michael ran straight towards the table and hoarded as many pastries as he could into his pockets.
The sound of a woman's laughter turned him around. It was an older woman in an outfit similar to those who'd been inside the ship. "There's plenty for everyone. No need to take them all at once." She leaned in and extended her hand. "What do I call you, young man?"
"Michael." He hesitantly shook her hand.
"I'm Ms. Xavier. I'm the mother at this refuge." The woman replied. "Are you hungry, Michael?"
"Yes, Mother." His eyes lit up with joy as Ms. Xavier led him to a dining room filled with more food than he'd ever seen. He ran excitedly to join the other children. A part of him almost thought he'd died and gone to heaven.